Before The Flower's Call
by Swizz
Summary: Sequel to 'Before the Red Moon.' The pack has escaped from the Noble Lady Sheshkemana, who holds them responsible for the death of her daughter, and ruined face. She's bent on revenge this time. Will escape be possible, or will it be a fight to the death?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Wolf's Rain. Paahaha. I'd love to, but I don't. –sighs dreamily-

**Before the Flower's Call**

Alone. It was a word that the young wolf hated. A feeling he dreaded. A sensation he feared. But it was the only way to describe what he was at the current moment. The clank of his bracelets was lost in the gentle thunder of the waterfall as he limped from the water he had been half lying in. He was cold, tired, hungry and injured…and afraid.

The moon overhead blazed white, bathing the tops of the trees in silver light, showering the flowers and dazzling on his brown and umber pelt. Its shattered reflection sparkled with the secrets of spirits and stars on the cold waters of the pool that spread like liquid diamond from the curtain of river water. The dark grass that grew sparsely along the banks of the river melted into soft forest loam as trees stretched up from the earth, prisoners of the ground stretching up to touch the moon.

Toboe looked up miserably. A subconscious self told him that it wouldn't be white for long. The young wolf sighed and dragged himself laboriously towards the forest, whimpering occasionally. His chest hurt with every shallow breath that he took, and his right hind leg throbbed as blood sluggishly leaked from a deep cut around the ankle.

He wanted to seek shelter from the outside, who knew what was out there, but he hadn't had all his senses knocked from his brain. Moonlight equaled strength…he looked up, making sure he was in plain sight of the moon's serene eye and then lay down in the wet, short grass, trying to get comfortable. It hurt so badly to move…it had been a fire, but it was like there was a bunch of burning hot embers in his chest, the flame intensifying with every breath.

The young wolf closed his amber eyes, bright with pain and tried to think. Where were Kiba and the others? Were the all right? Would they come for him? What if they thought he was dead…? Resigning himself to a despondent night, he put his braceletted paw over his eyes and wished for sleep to release him from the agony of his hurts, if only for a little while…

"I don't care if it scars!" snarled the large gray wolf, his yellow green eyes smoldering with pain and irritation. "I want to keep moving. What if he's—"

He stopped himself with a grunt as his fire and ice lanced through his shoulder, forcing him to give into his weakness and lay back down on the rock he was trying to sleep on. Besides, he barely caught himself behaving like a worried mother hen. That just wouldn't do. Kiba was positioned down on the loamy ground, his golden eyes closed. Hige was next to him, on his back with his hands behind his head. Getsuei was pointedly curled up with his back to Hige, under the overhang Tsume's rock created, trying to keep Marel warm. The old gray wolf was shivering badly, her blind eyes shut tight.

"We don't even know if he's alive or not," Hige said pessimistically, staring up at the sky, a sigh in his somewhat scratchy voice.

"Dammit, we'd feel it if it came to that, Hige," Getsuei snorted without turning to look at the hefty brown wolf. "Start talking like that and you might as well be a dog for all it's driving me crazy." Marel stirred weakly and growled, "Getsuei, let me out. I want to feel the moonlight on my fur. It'll do me more good than you caging me under this stupid rock. Move. And you two, stop bickering for once. It's making my head hurt."

Without waiting for Getsuei to move, Marel forced her way past the gray and cream lupine, staggering over to a patch of grass that was bathed silver by the moonlight and promptly flopped down into it, closing her blind eyes. "And the likeliest thing to happen is we'll find the pup in a day or two. _Don't _ask me anything else," her words turned into a growl just as Tsume started to open his mouth. "I don't know anything else, so don't badger me!"

Tsume was struck dumb. The old wolf wasn't even looking in his general direction. How the hell had she known that he was just about to say something? Hell, being blind didn't seem to hamper Marel one bit, if anything, it seemed as if she could see farther than a normal wolf. He looked questioningly in Hige's direction, but the big brown wolf merely shrugged, looking as clueless and awed at the same time as he did.

The big wolf grunted and moodily set his slender head on his paws. All was quiet after that, but he kept flicking his long tail back and forth. After a while, he closed his eyes in attempt to sleep, and just before he relaxed, he thought he heard a snigger that sounded horribly like Hige. His eyes flew open and his head jerked up as he swiveled his head in the direction of the sound, just to see a bunch of half-asleep wolves.

Dismissing it as paranoia, Tsume again tried to tempt sleep into taking him, but it stubbornly refused to come. _Looks like someone waylaid the sandman, _he groused inwardly, unaware of the things lurking out in those woods.

Several miles from where the wolves were, a subtle crackling and crunching could be heard—the destruction of foliage. Crack, crunch. The delicate rustle of shrubbery brushing against cloth and armor. The heavy breathing of the troops as they marched through the dense forest, the river the only indication of where they were supposed to go.

The leader of this patrol was a tall, thin man, whose face was hidden except for his dark blue eyes that glittered with malice. It was similar to what a burglar would wear, but made of an odd, shiny material. He smiled behind the mask. Those wolves couldn't be dead, so their search would not be in vain. Sheshkemana had finally blown her top—no one was sure for her sanity anymore. She was bent on retrieving the wolves, but she wanted one in particular. She had described the lupine form to be a gangly, skinny pup with a couple of silver bracelets around his right forelimb. When he was trying to disguise himself as a human, she described him as a boy that appeared no older than fourteen or so, with longish brown hair, odd, goldish colored eyes—but the bracelets were a dead giveaway. Another tidbit of information he had received from one of the soldiers, Maron or something, was that the big gray wolf with the scar on his chest had a brotherly affection towards the pup. Huh. Like they needed to know something as irrelevant as _that. _Well, that soldier wouldn't be spouting any useless rubbish anymore. The dead kept whatever foolishness they knew in life.

"Commander Dorjan. How much longer? We've been at this for almost two days!" One of the soldiers gasped, letting go of his composure to brave the wrath of their ruthless leader. Fool. He'd be dealt with another day. Dorjan slowly turned around, his odd eyes narrowed into inscrutable slits. He almost grinned when he saw the troops cringe when he turned his dark gaze on them.

"We'll rest here for a night. But if those wolves get away, it'll be your heads."

A/N: Feeeheeehee! First chapter of my second story! Hawr. Lonegrey, your review on the last chapter of Before the Red Moon tickled me pink. I feel so loved. Thank you very, very much. D.C., I'm glad to hear that silence. xD. Rae, Cring White Wolf, Wolf Called Killer and Chocolate Chan, thank you also. Tweak! Again you make me crack up with your reviews D. Don't worry, I will bring you guys more with this sequel, and don't mind the stupid title…please. I hope you guys like the opening of this story. Can't wait to hear your opinions.


	2. Prefight

Sheepishly

Disclaimer: I don't own Wolf's Rain. Paahaha. I'd love to, but I don't. –sighs dreamily-

**Before the Flower's Call**

Morning. The young wolf cringed in the sunlight as the fiery white orb rose into the sky and blared its warm, bright light down onto the aging world, slowly becoming the wasted product of human greed. For the first time, he wished that the moon could have reigned a bit longer, the warm rays of the sun harsh on his closed eyelids. The pain in his chest had lessened by a lot, but the memory still hurt, and the hopelessness of isolation crashed down on him like the moon falling out of the sky and onto his head. He felt a little sick, in pain and something inside him longed for the comfort of the pack.

It was the wild wolf's love of _family. _But it was something Toboe couldn't—wouldn't be able to identify. He didn't want to open his eyes at first, feeling as if his bones were filled with lead, and a crushing despair that he'd be cut off from the others. Why bother? What if they were—

He shook the thought away, a small flame stirring somewhere in his heart—a heart that was stronger than he knew. With a small grunt of effort, he opened his amber eyes and staggered to his paws, a tongue of pleasure lighting him—the pain wasn't nearly as intense as he expected, but it still throbbed and ached. Distantly, he remembered Cheza in the Forest of Death, recalling how he had healed his sprained ankle with merely a touch. He found himself wishing for her guidance too, but as it was…he'd have to make do on his own.

He felt small and insignificant in the shadow of the gnarled trees that reached for the sky, the thundering of the falls ever pounding in his ears, the whisper of wind a small comfort as it teased the flowers enough to dance in the small zephyr, tugging at his fur and tail. Toboe's paws were damp from the slick, muddy grass he had spent the night in, and it was time to move on into the woods.

If Tsume had been there, he would have snarled and grumbled at him to stop trembling like a rabbit when the hunter's by, the fear in his eyes obvious in their pale amber depths, the pounding of his heart against his chest reminding him of all the things that lurked in there. He was alone, and Getsuei could accurately describe him as a bad fighter. With a shudder he shoved away memories of the night Ren was killed—no, _murdered _in her wicked Mother's keep—and the shadows that just started to emerge from the trees and the long, twisted and knobby branches that reached out from oddly shaped foliage, reminding him all too well of that evil woman. Her strong, bony grip around his throat—her eyes burning with hate and pain, and the gentle crashing of the waterfall became her horrible, dry laugh that left him a ragged little runt, an obsolete weakling crouched at the base of the forest.

How could he dare go on? She had sworn to hunt them down, and kill them, and he, the least capable of the pack on his own. Vulnerable as a one legged rat. He took a deep, shuddering breath and opened his eyes—when had he closed them so tight in his fear?—and looked up and down, trying to penetrate barely exsistent shadows with his sharp wolf vision, but his overblown imagination had often gotten the better of him. But not today. He shook his head, trying to picture Tsume in his head, the strong, brave wolf he so looked up to—he never showed fear in the face of danger, always the defender, a fighter to be admired.

The thought of finally proving himself to that wolf, and maybe taking the first step to being more _like _the scarred gray warrior fueled his determination to taking his first, slow strides into the deep rescesses of the forest, making sure his senses were in tune with every thing around him, his ears pricked and swiveling in all directions, his eyes darting around while his nose fought to draw out the scents of his comrades. He'd find them…the thoughts were to help disguise the uncertainty that clouded his mind.

The poor wolf didn't have the fickle Dame Fortune on his side right now. For the wind was blowing the direction that masked the heavy scents of Dorjan, vassal of the hated Lady Sheshkemana.

Kiba was leading the pack through the forest by the riverbank, his faith in the fact that there was a way down—where the waterfall hit was nearby. After having trusted the white lupine this far, Getsuei didn't have any problems at all with it. Hell, these wolves had been a better family than his stupid sister could have ever been. And anyway, his promise to return Marel back to that pack was…not quite forgotten…just, unfulfilled.

And it never would be fulfilled. He had promised his own life if he didn't return her in ten days prior to rescuing Toboe and Tsume, and those ten days were up. Way up. Even if he did go back with the seer, his sister would kill him anyway. The seeds of doubt had been planted about him, and his constant haunting of the pack's whereabouts had annoyed her. In the early days of his exile, his enemies within the pack had taken advantage to pour further poison about him into Ryo's ears.

They hadn't been very close as cubs; he won her favor in the pack because of his fighting ability, leadership, and wile. It wouldn't be hard for Ryo to act as if they weren't kin—besides, he'd never have his place in the pack again. He'd be the bloody omega, as the humans put it, the dog of the pack. No…he'd never even be that. The omega was always cared for, a peacemaker, someone who disliked conflict. He may get picked on, but the pack loved him, for what he lacked in fighting ability, the omega made up in compassion and true-heartedness for the pack.

Just like the pup of Kiba's pack, Toboe. No, not even the rank of an omega would be granted to Getsuei if he returned—he'd be spat on, kicked at, scorned and damned by his own family. Well, not in this millennium! He had found…friends?

Despite the wolf's skeptical, mistrusting and contrary character, he was starting to care deeply for the pack that had taken him in. Hige might be a pain in the ass, but if he ever left, or was killed, it just wouldn't be the same. Grudgingly, he was starting to enjoy the brown wolf's company. The part of him that had been shoved away by the soldier part of him tentatively voiced that it wanted the friendship. He and Tsume got along better, for both had similarities not only in personality, but unbeknownst to them, their pasts also had an analogous ring. Not that either of them would ever say anything to bring attention to their bloody histories. Kiba, distant as he was, was a good wolf too. He may be secretive and enigmatic sometimes—most of the time, but Getsuei wasn't stupid, he could see that there was something about the white wolf that set him off from them, from the blaze of destiny and purpose in those golden eyes to the way that he constantly looked inside himself to lead them. He was a good leader, tenfold the leader his…sister could ever be.

And he was happy to be a part of it.

Kiba, as usual was striding ahead of the pack by several lengths, his pace quick and ground covering despite. Getsuei himself was keeping good pace, the moonlight had healed his bloodied flank, and it felt almost as good as new. Tsume's shoulder was still a bit stiff and achy. Hige was fine, and Marel, strangely, acted and appeared as if she had never been injured or rode to exhaustion.

Tsume was about half a length behind the big white wolf, his head up, his ears swiveling in every direction, his nostrils dilating as he tried to pull Toboe's scent from the air. Hige was trying to make conversation from Marel, if only to break the heavy silence that hung over the wolves like a stormcloud. Finally, when it was obvious he would make no progress, he raised his eyes to the sky and demanded, "Why the hell is it so quiet? Someone, anyone, say something! I wouldn't even mind if Getsuei started whining about now."

"Excuse me, _who's _whining?" Getsuei asked with a little bit of a smirk. He was happy, and right now, he felt at peace with the world. He felt no reason to complain. Hell, he couldn't find a single thing to complain about…except…

"Shut up, Hige!" Tsume snapped irritably, his yellow green eyes narrowed. "If you're not going to help us find the pup, keep your mouth shut."

The large brown wolf looked up, startled and slightly hurt at Tsume's words, but he flattened his ears and frowned, his superior nose sniffing the air with a manner of one deeply offended, keeping a huffy silence for awhile. Getsuei also turned and scowled at Tsume, he didn't need to get so damn worked up about the pup, Marel had said they'd—

"Oh _crap!" _Hige suddenly cried, his eyes getting huge. "Oh this is bad! Kiba, I smell Nobles!"

A/N: Heya, guys! –is exploding happiness- Glad you liked it! That's very pleasing to hear from you all—Lonegrey, Kristen, Tweak (hee!), CC (Mind if I call you that, Chocolate Chan? ), D.C., Wolf Called Killer, and Rae. As for how long the story's going to be, Rae, I have no clue. You shall wait and see, as will I and all the others. –grins- xD Music is an inspiration for me…oh, and thanks Lonegrey. Me, and inspiration? –blushes- Aw. I'm flattered. –hugs- Oy, to all of you, here's a thing I frequently do—depending on what the mood of whatever I'm writing is, I'll listen to a bit of music. Enya or Evanescence works quite well for Wolf's Rain.


	3. Author's Note I know it sucks!

Disclaimer: I don't own Wolf's Rain. Paahaha. I'd love to, but I don't. –sighs dreamily-

A/N: Sorry for the lack of chapter…my time's running out. Muchas gracias to all who reviewed! –glomps- I'm so happy to hear you guys are still hanging on, but I've got some really bad news for you all…in a week, I'm going to barely get enough time to breathe, and I'll be gone for several weeks with no access to a computer whatsoever. Camps, vacations with annoying realtives and more camps await…-sigh- So, having said that, I need to know weather or not you're willing to wait near /months/ for an update, because I'll only be able to update really infrequently. So, it's up to you weather I continue the story, or just delete it here, due to my upcoming inactiveness…-sniff-


	4. Courage of a Wolf, Cowardice of a Man

Disclaimer: I don't own Wolf's Rain. Paahaha. I'd love to, but I don't. –sighs dreamily-

**Before the Flower's Call**

Toboe was getting into his stride. It no longer hurt so bad to move, after trotting steadily for a few hours in the direction that his instincts were taking him. He was still pretty slow, going up this steep incline, and was still doubtful that his instincts were taking him where he should go, considering the fact that he hadn't used them often before in this manner…

What really bugged him was the fact that none of the birds were singing, but he dismissed as their silence after seeing the predator, the wolf—after Hige had told him numerous times that's that was what it was. No animal was ever fooled by the human illusion that other humans got to see. But it was still unnerving, but he had to continue.

Something made the wolf's pace quicken. For some reason, the hair on the back of his neck was starting to stand up, go stiff, and his heart rate was accelerating subtly as he glanced over his shoulder more often than not. Why the heck did it feel like someone was watching him? Where were the others when he needed them?

He nervously swallowed, hard, and was trying to pull anything—scents, sounds, out of the air that could tell him where his friends were, and to what should have been his relief, he felt cold dread. He heard snarling. Human screaming. And the wild, whistling sounds of Shockers firing. Not guns, _Shockers. _

The young wolf put two and two together. Lady Sheshkemana had called her cronies out. And his friends were fighting. And he would have to do so shortly. His eyes widened characteristically as he forced himself to push away his fear. He had done this many times before…but why did he get so scared…?

Should he even run to fight? He never did much anyway…the older wolves always handled it, almost without his help.

_Almost. _

And what might Tsume say? _Tsume_ and the others were in trouble. His friends. What kind of friend was he if he'd not even go to the fight, even when he was nearby? It was the ultimate crime of cowardice.

Suddenly, his heart started to pound. Not only with just fear, but with a rush of urgency. He had to get there.

"I'm coming, guys!" he howled, breaking into a run as the cry pierced the still air. The scenery flashed under the wolf's paws, the chinking of the bracelets on his right forelimb clicking in time with the beat of his heart. "I'm coming!"

The battle lines had been drawn, stepped over and completely lost in the coming fight. Man and beast were engaged in a screaming, howling struggle for either freedom or capture.

Tsume had just finished sinking his teeth into the neck of one of the soldiers; his snarls muffled as the man flailed violently a few times, and then slumped, dead. The battle was hard, Marel had been ushered to safety, and it wasn't just Getsuei who insisted on it—the whole pack was aware that Marel wasn't able to fight, not yet, and her blindness was a great risk, for these stupid flunkies of Sheshkemana obviously wanted them alive. Kiba and the others were right behind the cream and gray lupine in getting her away.

Kiba himself, a white flash among the browns and grays of the other wolves was a war machine effectively getting rid of any human between him and their leader, who had a pulse-laser, just in case one wolf got too dangerous.

Hige and Getsuei were an effective team against several of the other troops. The screams and snarls filled the clearings, the crash of leaves as a man fell, the scrabble of claws on the dirt, the occasional sizzling sound of a Shocker shell whizzing past. Tsume spat out blood and prepared to lunge at another Noble, his lips curled back to reveal his long, bloodstained teeth when the howl interrupted him.

Hige's head snapped in the direction of the noise, his eyes wide, "Is that--?"

"Toboe!" Tsume said shortly, slamming one of his huge paws into the troop's face. That stupid kid! He should have stayed away, and knowing him, he'd be all bashed up from his ride over the waterfall…damn, damn, damn! He might get injured, or even worse, captured…the thought of that made the gray wolf's stomach clench uneasily, and his heartbeat started to race.

Toboe was nearing the battle site. His tongue was lolling out, his eyes starting to narrow, the fighting blood of the wolf rising in him, the spirit of the angry lupine fueling his body just as he crashed in upon the site, leaving the ground with a huge leap and a vicious snarl, crashing muzzlefirst into one of the troops, grabbing onto his throat with an iron grip. All sense of self had been swept away, he was going on instinct. Pure, wild instinct that frightened his subconscious self.

The pup whirled away from the man, who in his dying moment swung the butt of his gun around to slam it into Toboe's forehead, speeding his retreat from the soldier to leap and attack another…

Dorjan was grappling with Kiba, and the strength of the ferocious white wolf and the savagery burning in his golden eyes made him realize his mistake in engaging the wolves. His troopers were done for…but he could at least save his own skin. With a rush of adrenaline, she shoved Kiba away, threw the pulse-laser at him with all his might and seized a small smoke-bomb from his belt. The smell and the smoke would keep the wolves from pursing him. He hurled it into Kiba's face, just as the white wolf was staggering to his feet to charge again, snarling, and then ran as the thing detonated.

Smoke was everywhere. Stinging Toboe's eyes, seeping into his lungs, making him feel sicker than before. He was dazed by the battle, and the coppery taste of his own blood—he had been knocked in the mouth—made him want to throw up, but he held onto himself as the smoke washed over the pelts of he and his friends, clearing away the stench of battle and infiltrating their senses…until a breeze took it all away.

A/N: All of you guys who reviewed brought me to my senses. –grins and hugs- I'll continue, but yes, you'll have to wait awhile in the coming weeks for slow updates…if I'm fast, I just might finish the story by then. 0.0 Here's your chapter guys. –shifty eyes- Sorry for the badness.


	5. Premonition

Disclaimer: I don't own Wolf's Rain. Paahaha. I'd love to, but I don't. –sighs dreamily-

**Before the Flower's Call**

The silence was deafening. Not a bird stirred. Not a breeze whispered by, not a leaf twitched. All motion was halted, as if everything was caught in a giant freeze frame. The blood of the dead noble troops spattered the ground, coloring the leaf-mold forest floor. The only sound Toboe could hear was his own ragged breathing, and it was a bit of time before he allowed his fur to relax on his shoulders. It was silence and situations like this that made him nervous.

Getsuei was the one who broke the awful hush.

"Well," he growled, shaking his cream and gray coat, his bright green eyes closed as he proceeded to stretch. "That was refreshing. Nice of you to show up, Toboe."

The pup sharply turned his head at the big two colored wolf, finding himself rather surprised that Getsuei didn't use his customary nickname—runt. He wasn't sure weather or not to say anything, so he just sat down and glanced around.

Tsume was watching him with piercing, yellow green eyes, his fluffy tail curled around his big paws. "You all right, runt?" he asked of Toboe, his voice carefully monotone.

Discarding the stale guilt he felt for the death of the soldiers who would have seen _them _to their deaths, Toboe was pleased at Tsume's notice and the quiet concern veiled behind disdain for the troops. He stood up and wagged his tail in slow motion.

"Yeah. I'm fine," he tried to assure the others, but Hige prowled up to him and gave his shoulder a sniff with his keen nose. Toboe shrank from the scruntiny, his ears flattening a little in meek surprise.

"You smell and look pretty banged up to me. That must have been one hell of a ride down the river," the big brown wolf commented in his animated voice.

"Can you move easily?" Came Kiba, his voice colored the tiniest bit by concern, his long slender head turned in Toboe's direction while his body was facing sideways, at least in Toboe's view.

The young wolf had almost forgotten the dull ache in his chest. It seemed as if remembering its severity only made it worse, because he reasoned the brunt of the pain now was only in his mind.

"Yeah. I ran here, didn't I?" he tried to make his voice a bit more convincing that he was all right, but since he did it so little, it sounded alien in his voice. Kiba nodded in satisfaction and said, "We need to get out of here. The sooner, the better, that hunter'll most likely be after us in a bit. We need to throw him off our trail."

"Yeah, something tells me that Sheshkemana lady isn't gonna give up easily," Hige commented wryly.

"Well, we might as well do our best to get clear of her," Tsume growled, tipping his head down with his eyes closed, his voice returned to its deep, forever nonchalant tone.

Marel, who had limped up from hiding restored the atmosphere of the pack. "Let's go," she snapped, pointedly giving Getsuei the cold shoulder. "I know I'm sure as hell that I don't want to hang around this damned place. Come on." As if she knew exactly where Kiba was, she trotted in the white wolf's direction and then stopped a few feet away. "Lead the way."

Toboe watched with a dropped jaw. How the heck did she do it? He half toyed with the idea that she wasn't even really blind, but it was her inability to hunt that proved it. But if you ever said that to her, be prepared to duck…

Kiba nodded and then set off in the direction of the moon at a fast pace, not an all out run like he would usually have them going, but he obviously wanted to make allowances for Marel and Toboe. Even thought it was obvious and awfully embarrassing, the pup was glad for Kiba's consideration of their conditions.

He also kind of felt bad that he was being a hindrance. Hige probably wouldn't mind though…

As the wolves had predicted, the shadow of doubt and the vassal of their enemy at the moment was trailing them. They had fled the battle site almost an hour ago when Dorjan read the tracks. As they proceeded, it looked like they were going about seventeen miles per hour, damn it.

He shouldered his gun, and without a second glance at the dead men, proceeded.

Marel could sense Getsuei's mother-hen-ish presence not too far ahead. Hige's bulky presence was to the right, Kiba's completely unfathomable one was several meters in front of the rest, Tsume was close behind him, and Toboe was about half a length behind her. Her sense of smell and hearing were as acute as ever, taking in the surroundings so well that she could almost picture it in her mind's eye…

The old wolf sighed inwardly. Sight. Something she had almost forgotten, and yet wished she had. She used to love the colors, and tiny, stupid details of the world, and the facial expressions of the wolves she spoke to. The vivid, bright blue of the sky on clear days. The intriciate, delicate and unique shapes of each snowflake that floated down to stick to her pelt and melt on her nose. The look of pleasure and determination on Ryo's face when she predicted a bountiful season, or pups…the Sight, her inner eye was a grand thing, but she had always preferred her physical eyes.

But then they had begun to fade. She remembered the day when she woke up, and things were starting to blur, and no matter how many times she blinked, or rammed her head into things, it wouldn't get any better. Within a week, she could no longer distinguish facial features, or see tracks, and within two, her sight had completely bled away. She had been middle-aged then. Ryo was barely an adolescent or 'teenager' as a human might put it when she had taken leadership of the pack…as had Getsuei. Oh, that Getsuei.

He was the wolf who had been her eyes after she had lost her sight. Marel had considered suicide several times after she went blind, but Getsuei had always talked her out of it, gave her a reason to live. He was the son she never had, as Ryo was the daughter. But the strain of responsibility was hard on Ryo's shoulders, and it drew the both of them apart.

Then, that fateful day when she was taken by the Nobles. Oh, months and months of torture had ensued, causing the old wolf to loose her will to live. She had wished for a release to Paradise, but it was not to be…until she met Toboe. That pup reminded her of Getsuei when he had been younger. But those days were, over, and now she was with this new pack. They were a good lot, and Kiba had drive to actually try to find Paradise…Ryo had tried, but too many times had she been hurt emotionally over time.

She was getting tired, they had been running for hours, but her pride was still intact. She might as well try and look into the future, if only to distract her from aching paws and leaden limbs, not to mention her own ragged breathing…she let her conciousness fly through the endless sky of her mind, clouds streaking alongside her and under her and over her, the light of the moon pouring down from above as her soul self ran endlessly in a misty sea, stars sprinkled beyond their expanse. A shimmering pool of light appeared before her, so close that she could almost taste it, yet so far, it was hard to 'see'. Blurred images ran through it, complicated algorithms of futures, possibilities, and then…

Marel sighed as she watched the pool, and closed her inner eye, suddenly heavy with regret. She had guessed it would come to this. But she had tried to deny it. And she wished she could say something, because the very thought of it made her heart bleed.

Someone wasn't going to make it to Paradise alive. And it would happen before the next full moon.

A/N: Happy Fourth of July! - I am lucky to have such glorious readers and reviewers. –nodnod- Very lucky. I feel really guilty I haven't been able to update. –smacks own forehead- It's been hideously busy, and I will soon leave for a week-long overnight camp. –frustrated sigh- I hope this chapter can make some amends. Thanks to the great crowd of mine, (Lonegrey, Kristen, Tweak, D.C, Cring White Wolf and Sea Mistress—welcome to the pack! ) and I will sorely miss you. I will write up as much as I can, while I can. Bahahaha! This is more of a teaser than anything, but can any of you guess?


	6. Watch Your Backs, Wolves

Disclaimer- I don't own Wolf's Rain. If I did, there'd be a new season already.

A/N: HUGE author's note at the end…

Dedication: This story is hereby dedicated to the wonderful Lonegrey. Here's to you, friend.

**Before the Flower's Call**

Three days had flown by, and the wolves had covered an incredible distance. A long time ago, a wolf could only cover about thirty miles a day, but in the present, it was either extraordinary endurance on the part of the pack, or wolves could not cover sixty miles in a day. Either way, it didn't matter. What mattered was—

"Look, see that!" Hige said excitedly as they crested a hill. "Finally! The sun was beginning to set, casting a great golden glow over the world as far as Toboe could see, silhouetting a small town black against its bright radiance. A warm breeze stirred his fur and tugged at his pelt as Kiba, out in front halted, smiling lightly, an expression rarely seen on the muzzle of the great white wolf. Tsume was also grinning, heck, even Getsuei had a silly grin slapped on his face.

Toboe blinked several times, trying to evaluate the city from their distance. "It looks big," he commented, cocking his head and pricking his ears forward a little bit, his tail wagging slightly. He was looking forward to the town, for the first time in a long time, they could have something warm in their bellies and rest…he had almost forgotten about the ruthless Dorjan, as they hadn't heard, scented or seen hide nor hair of the man. Getsuei said a day before that they could safely bet the left the bastard behind, but Marel wasn't so sure.

The young brown lupine shuddered involuntarily. Just thinking about Sheshkemana and her horrible people made him nervous. Hige didn't notice.

"All right!" he continued to crow, grinning like an idiot. "Hot meals, no Nobles and probably plenty of pretty girls!"

Tsume rolled his eyes at Hige, but nothing more. Everyone was used to his banter.

"We'll make it there by moonset if we hurry," Kiba told them, his face returned to its usual sphinx-like mold. "You up to the run?" he turned his head in the direction of Marel, who had been uncharictaristically lagging and slow, her blind eyes troubled, the aura around her going from proud and cranky to almost a despairing mood.

The pack, namely Getsuei was worried for her.

Toboe glanced over to the cream and gray wolf, biting his lip. The moon-marked lupine's ordinarily flinty eyes were narrowed in concern, his frustration clear on his face. Marel had refused to justify her condition with a name, and Getsuei probably felt helpless.

But Marel didn't want to be the object of pity. "I'm fine," she growled in reply. "I can make the run as well as you pups can. Come on, daylight's burning away."

Toboe was going to protest something, but Tsume shoved him lightly. "Don't say a word," the older wolf told him before bounding away after Kiba, Hige and Marel. Toboe followed reluctantly.

Marel's mind was racing as the pack ran on towards the city, now looming up clearly in the near distance. _I have to tell them! _She thought as her strides shortened and her breathing faltered. _They have a right to know, I can't just leave them in the dark! Time's running out…they need to know soon._

Dorjan was in one hell of a bad mood, but it didn't show on his sinister face as he jogged after the trail the wolves left, using his handheld radar system to track the elusive lupines. He was almost two full days behind them, and if they got any further ahead, they'd leave him behind for good.

Sheshkemana'd have his head on a stick for that.

Cursing his lack of a vehicle and communication, the man continued on. The white wolf had literally destroyed his phone, so there was no way he could contact Lady Sheshkemana. Not that he wanted to, probably because all he'd get over the phone would be incoherent screams.

With luck, she might have killed herself before he returned, but there was no such good fortune. At least her stupid daughter was dead. Filthy half-breed, he had known all the long. Was he not a wolf-hunter by profession?

The sun was sinking, and the forest, which had been bright with the light of sunset, was starting to dim, and the nightingale, a bird almost extinct started its evening song. Dorjan narrowed his eyes, having half a mind to shoot the bird if he found it, but quickly decided against it. He didn't have ammo to spare. Nor batteries, nor food or water past his emergency supplies kit, and in a day or so, they'd be run dry.

He wanted to scream his frustration and take it out on someone, anyone, but of course, that wouldn't do. That wouldn't do at all….so absorbed in his current troubles, the dark hunter barely noticed that the trees were starting to thin, the forest ground giving way to barren, rocky land. It took him almost five seconds to fully register this.

Allowing a wicked grin to steal over his face, he quickly topped the tall hill that was a mere few meters away, leaping up it akin to a squirrel racing up a tree.

In the sterile distance, to his great glee, he could see six tiny dots moving steadily towards a town.

Not just any town, a town under the control of none other than everyone's favorite crazy Noble with a dead daughter and a deformed face. Another stroke of luck was that this was a very anonymous city, so the wolves wouldn't know who controlled it until too late.

He looked down the sheer face of the hill. Below, was a middle-aged man, his wife and two small children. There was a trailer and a beat-up truck not too far off, which obviously stated that they were on a camping trip of some sort. But that didn't interest Dorjan one little bit.

The man was holding a cell phone.

Without a second thought, he brought his rifle up to his eye, aimed, and shot true.

Author's Note: -gets down on knees- I am so sorry. I have no excuse other than a severe case of heartsickness and lack of motivation for the breakdown of this story, but I am back and hopefully better than ever. For those happy to see the return of this story, don't thank me, thank Lonegreywolf, who was the one to drag me out of dormancy and back into my writing. I don't know how else to thank you, my friend. Be warned, that I won't be able to update more than one a week, but I will continue steadily until I bring this story to a good conclusion. Thanks again. Oh, and don't forget to review! Forgive me for the shortness as well. The next chapter will be nice and meaty, I promise!


	7. Cut Off

Disclaimer- I don't own Wolf's Rain. If I did, there'd be a new season already.

A/N: ARGH! Sorry for the lateness! This chapter flows mostly around Marel and Getsuei, but don't worry, it will return to mostly Toboe next chapter most likely…

Dedication: This story is hereby dedicated to the wonderful Lonegrey. Here's to you, friend.

**Before the Flower's Call**

Like Kiba had predicted, the moon was setting in the azure sky by the time the wolves reached the run-down little town. The stars were starting to fade as a lighter sky started to wash from the east, watering the color from a hard, dark blue to a paleish gray in the east.

Getsuei was thrilled to see the town clearly, and the fact that the streets appeared deserted made him want to wag his tail, but he didn't. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw Marel. His heart stung. Each stride looked laborious for the old wolf, her pink tongue lolling out of her mouth, her eyes rolled upwards towards the sky in exhaustion as she panted heavily. Her gray fur seemed whiter around the muzzle than it usually was, and the fact she was behind Toboe invited a wave of worry to crash over him.

None of the other wolves, not even the pup were showing signs of tiring. The only good thing about the situation was the fact that the city up ahead looked shabby, worn out and trampled. There wouldn't be too many people around here, and even then, they wouldn't bother the wolves in anyway. Too scared, probably.

"Kiba!" he called, accelerating the slightest bit to get closer to the white wolf far out front. To his surprise, Toboe's child-like voice finished for him.

"Kiba, we need to stop! Marel can't go on like this!"

Kiba halted, his sudden stop sending dust leaping from his front paws. Getsuei also skidded to a stop; the others did the same. Marel, for one, did not. Rather than just skid, she fell forward with a dull thump, her eyes closed.

"Marel!" Getsuei cried, distressed. He sprinted over to the fallen wolf's side, watching her heavy breathing, in out, in, and out, harsh and raspy. Her sides heaved like a pair of bellows, and the tip of her tongue stuck out.

"Is she okay?" Hige asked as Toboe crouched beside Marel on the opposite side of Getsuei. Tsume's face was creased in a worried frown that surprised Getsuei. Kiba looked down with wide, golden eyes, as if wondering what to make of the situation, but consciously or not, the white wolf seemed to keep them veiled at all times, so it was impossible to know what he was thinking.

"Marel, Marel!" Toboe cried, shaking the old female gently, trying to get her to open her blind eyes at least. "Please Marel, say something!"

Getsuei waited with bated breath for his surrogate mentor and good friend to open her eyes, the only indication he would have that she was okay. After what seemed like an age, with silence hanging over the six wolves like a shadow, Marel coughed violently and opened her eyes.

"There's dust in my mouth and gullet. And I just need rest." Marel's voice lacked the usual sharp barb of defensiveness that it usually had, and when she staggered to her paws, and then failed to stand up, Tsume caught her before Getsuei could. Getsuei threw him a dirty look for an instant, but then relented. Tsume was bigger and stronger than he was, and could carry Marel better than he could. Even though he knew he was being unreasonable, he felt a prickle of shame.

"Let's get into town. We'll find food and rest there." Kiba said tonelessly, turning his back, but he cast a worried glance over his shoulder before slinking up ahead, followed slowly by the pack as they entered the town. Getsuei trotted after them, noting with discomfort that Marel had closed her eyes again.

Dorjan gleefully walked towards the town at his leisure, carrying a full pack of food from the now dead family stupid enough to camp in this desolate region, water, and a cell phone he was currently using to contact his minions in the city.

"Six wolves are entering the South way. They're the ones Lady Sheshkemana's looking for. She wants them alive, but if you need to kill, kill. Except for a little brown one, that one needs to be alive. He's the one who wrecked the Lady's face. You're on it, Captain. Send your squads in." He hung up without waiting for an answer from the obviously surprised Captain Markus and pocketed the cell phone.

It wouldn't be too difficult to get in there, once the wolves were captured and claim the glory. It wasn't like Markus's troops could do or say anything to contradict him without getting…hurt.

Sometimes fatally so.

"Here, Marel," the old wolf heard Toboe say. "Drink this…" at the scent of water, Marel heaved herself forward and lifted her head with agonizing slowness, sticking out her dry tongue in the direction she knew where the water was. When the questing tip made contact with the water, she started to lap it greedily, allowing the replenishing substance to wash through her system, clearing her senses and making it easier to breathe.

She senses familiar presences around her, the pack. There was stone under her paws and stone over them—they were in a small shelter of stone, judging by the cool air and the feeling of shadows falling over them all.

It was quiet, except for the drip-drip sound of water that seemed to come from the far right corner. Marel assumed this was where they acquired her water, but despite the refreshment, she felt older than she was, sick, and weak. Her Inner Eye was spinning, telling her that it had a lot to tell her, and by the darkness that stifled her mind, the news was bad.

The old wolf sighed and then took a look, only to sag outwardly and feel her heart sink. She lifted her muzzle to speak, when an explosion rocked the shelter.

A/N: Okay, so I inadverntly lied about the meaty chapter thing. Argh, it looked so much longer on Word…anyway, I apologize for the shortness of both the chapter and the author's note, I'm getting screamed at… ;; Thanks once again for my FAITHFUL PACK OF REVIEWERS who have returned after putting up with the biggest most procrastinating, insensitive writer on the planet—me—and still dropping encouraging words. I luffs ya all! –glomps-


	8. Chase

Disclaimer- I don't own Wolf's Rain. But if the producers would ever be so kind as to sell it to me…. 3

Dedication: This story is hereby dedicated to the wonderful Lonegrey. Here's to you, friend.

**Before the Flower's Call**

Toboe flinched at the sudden rumbling, his amber eyes huge as he flattened his ears and looked up. "The whole thing's coming down!" he wailed, fear seizing the pup by the throat just as Tsume seized him by the scruff.

"Move!" the older wolf snarled through a mouthful of the runt's fur as he literally threw him towards the exit. Toboe landed with a dull thud and a grunt, feeling the rocks crash down around him. The moaning of the walls as they came down roared in the ears of the wolves as Toboe scrabbled to his paws, shaking off dust and pebbles. He opened his eyes, only to cough and blink rapidly to clear the dust from them, dimly spotting Getsuei and Kiba helping Marel to her feet while Tsume and Hige had their backs against the wall, trying to buy time for the old wolf.

Torn for a split second, the young wolf glanced behind him. The section of the wall was crumbling, and the flickering flame in his heart roared as he threw himself against that wall. The sharp rocks and grit grated against his fur and skin, the great weight of the wall pressing down on his small frame as he willed himself to bear it, his eyes shut with effort. He could have sworn he had Tsume's approving eyes on him, but the feeling was gone as Marel let out a whimpering snarl.

"Get off! I can run! Run! Get out of here, quick!" her voice took on a strange, raspy edge. "That bastard in the forest has sent troops after us! Sheshekmana's troops are here—they blew up the foundation of this building! We need to run!" She struggled free of Kiba and Getsuei, rearing up on her fragile hind legs and delivering a sharp swat to both of their rumps. Toboe might have laughed if the situation wasn't so dire, Kiba stumbled away, a look of shock and a new, higher respect for the old she-wolf entering his usually enigmatic golden eyes as he turned and said, "You heard her! Move!"

Getsuei, in this black moment looked shocked and relieved as Marel shot out the opening, held up by Toboe. Kiba barreled on after her, followed closely by Kiba and Hige and Getsuei. Tsume brought up the rear and shoved Toboe through. "Run!"

Everything was happening so quickly that the pup could barely register what was going on as his paws automatically started to work, the only thing keeping him from giving into blind panic was a glimmer of pride and the fire that burned inside him. _I helped them…I helped them escape! _

Dust fell in thin waterfalls from the collapsing building and even outside; the air was choked with sand, the sun blotted out momentarily, before a heavy, surprisingly cold wind started to push it away with a shrieking moan characteristic of a gale. Now, Toboe could see the fleeing shapes of his friends in front of him, and the great gray Tsume at running at his side. People screamed and through themselves out of the careening wolf pack's way as the mechanical, fuzzy voices of men speaking through walkie-talkies filled the place.

"Quarry sighted! Move out and capture them! Now! Kill if you need to!"

The _rattarattarattarattarattaratt _of heavy, powerful bullets screaming through the air and peppering the hard ground around the wolves as sparks flew from the ground on their impact, scattering the pack.

Suddenly, with grace and power that no on in the pack could have guessed she had, Marel leaped from the ground and onto the canvas shading a food stall, running on the sturdy cloth and leaping from canvas to canvas, snapping bravely at the guards below. There was not time to recognize the feat as Tsume lunged into the air to mirror her on the opposite street. After those two jumped to elevation, the rest of the pack followed shortly, catching on.

If the guards shot at them up there and missed, they could risk bringing down walls if a bullet went too badly astray.

Hige and Getsuei soared onto the carved out stone pillars that threatened to fall upon the people of the city, about ten meters in front of Marel, alternating with amazing accuracy and teamwork that neither of them thought they'd be able to pull together. Kiba, since the city was symmetrical, did the same on the other side, leaping from pillar to pillar, making for a very difficult white target.

The last one on the hard, cobbled ground inevitably was Toboe, now starting to give way to panic as bullets peppered the ground around him. "There's the little one!" a coarse, male voice bellowed. "Catch him!" With a frightened yell, Toboe sharply skidded to avoid a heavy net hurled at him, the weighted object clattering to the ground barely inches behind his wild turn.

"Toboe!" the brown wolf desperately looked up to see Hige on one of the pillars that was starting to topple. "Go after Kiba! Go!" at the last second, the heavyset wolf leaped from his pillar was the thing collapsed, smashing several guards below him with howls of dismay, leaving only silence…and a leak of red human blood that spilled from the desolate pile.

The runt glanced to Kiba's line of pillars, swallowing hard. It was a jump that any of the older wolves could make, but could he? Of course he could…with a grunt of effort, the pup concentrated all the power of his muscles into his hind legs and launched himself from the ground like a guided missile, feeling his stomach drop and his heart lurch as time seemed to slow as the world beneath his paws became smaller as he went higher, the slow beat of blood in his ears thumping once…and he landed on a pillar, crashing back to reality and all the world's pace and noise filled his ears again.

The pup whined in terror as he felt the unsteady stone start to wobble as he was forced to leap after Kiba, his paws barely touching the surface of one before having to lunge again to keep from falling to the ground. Bullets and curses were still being thrown at them, but they were more…distant now.

Toboe was just getting into his stride when Kiba leaped off the pillars, followed by the pack when a single, hard shot rang out.

A shreking whimper of pain, and a howl of despair.

"MAREL!"

A/N: I am back and I refuse to leave without finishing this story, no matter what anyone at home says. I owe it to you guys, and either way, I enjoy writing and entertaining for you. Thanks to you all! I hope you enjoyed this chapter…and that the fact I return to finish makes you happy. Cherio, I shall be back in a few days with an update for you.


	9. I Waited Way Too Long

Disclaimer- I don't own Wolf's Rain. But if the producers would ever be so kind as to sell it to me…. 3

Dedication: This story is hereby dedicated to the wonderful Lonegrey. Here's to you, friend.

**Before the Flower's Call**

Marel had been running strong along the canvas, and then skillfully leaped from one broken bit of pillar to the next, following the other wolves with incredible skill. She had surprised herself at how well she was doing at the moment, she could feel the wind rushing in her ears, the sense of her cut clenching whenever she neared an edge and the lurch of her heart whenever she lunged from point to point, sensing Getsuei and Tsume's comforting presences, with Hige and Toboe on the other side, Kiba far out in front.

Guttural, angry yells and the repetitive growl of machine guns raged around the fleeing pack, stone dust and the scent of blood and sweat filling the air around them. The scents of fear and desperation permeated oxygen, making it almost sickening to breathe…

Her paws scrabbled on the rough sandstone and then slipped on the suddenly smooth, but cold canvas above the small stands in the city. The sound of falling rocks made her want to wince, reminding her of her old, pounding heart, retelling of her weakness. Her inner eye was swirling fast, making the whole scene all the more terrifying. It was saying, _It's almost time, it's almost time! You must hurry! You need to tell them!_

The thought chilled her to the bone. She knew down, deep in her soul, but she didn't want to believe it. She wasn't afraid of death. No wolf in the world was. She was afraid what would come with it. And until then, she would do everything she could to preserve her life, and those of the small, battered back she belonged to…

Her concentration wavered, and she stumbled, grunting as she almost lost her footing, and then a sudden gunshot that sounded so close, and then…

Searing pain like fire and ice at the same time screamed through her body as a white-hot bullet tore through her flesh like some kind of rocket, slamming and stopping amid her muscle and bone, radiating agony through her old frame. Blood spread from the wound—where was it? Behind her right front leg…Marel let out a whimper that was more a scream and fell, endlessly from the canvas, unable to think of anything but the terrible pain in her side. She barely felt the impact as her frail body slammed down onto the cobbled ground, distantly hearing something crack. More pain…this time, it was sickening. She retched, just as a shrill and desperate cry, Getsuei's familiar voice screamed, "MAREL!"

She heard heavy footsteps coming towards her. Triumphant yells, and then the cocking of more barrels. Blood welled from the wound, spreading like red ink from the injury, and her inner eye was howling that she had to tell the others…because this was her finale.

She heard sudden snarls, snarls not only belonging to Getsuei, but Kiba, Tsume, Hige and Toboe. The clack of claws came, and then pained screams of dying humans. Some ran…she could hear retreating footsteps…but she was starting to succumb to her eternal darkness, as every beat of her heart she lost more blood, and with ever beat, it slowed.

As the distant battle raged, curses and howls and growls replaced the groan and roar of breaking stone as Marel suddenly remembered her purpose. _I'm not so old…that I'll go like this! _She thought with a flash of her old fire. She fought the darkness, willing her heart to keep beating…willing her mind to stay clear enough to think about what she was going to say. Regret welled up in the back of her mind. _I should have told them sooner..._

The noise of battle subsided, and faded away as humans screamed and ran for retreat. The groans of the dying were silenced by…she believed it to be Kiba and Tsume.

"Marel? Marel? Marel!" came Toboe's voice, cracked as the old wolf felt his warm, small and awkward presence at her side. Getsuei rushed over as well. She could tell that his eyes were open with shock and grief. It was in the way he presented himself on her other side. "Marel…don't die. Please don't die…" his voice, like Toboe was a little cracked, but it didn't betray as much emotion as Toboe's did…but somehow, they way he didn't expressed more.

She felt the dignified sadness of Tsume sitting by Toboe, a paw on the runt's shoulder…she could tell by the way Toboe was slumped down a little bit. Kiba was standing, looking down in stately sorrow. Hige looked on, his head bowed. Getsuei was now lapping at Marel's grevious wound trying to mop up the mess of blood as if he could somehow make the injury disappear…

"No, Getsuei," Marel rasped. "That one had my name on it." The slur of her voice slightly started her, and the weakness of her tone…it was strange and alien to the dying wolf.

"But Marel!" Toboe cried. He was going to say more, but Tsume probably silenced him. Marel couldn't sense it very well any more, and her time was running out.

"Listen!" she choked as her inner eye spun, faster and faster. Her grief at leaving them was more painful that the fatal wound in her side, the bullet nestled against her slowing heart. Her guilt rose like water, filling a bucket, and it felt so very good as she began to speak.

"I waited far too long…to tell you…" she croaked, beginning. "Far…too…long…"

_To be continued…DUN DUN DUN!_

A/N: DARM DARM DARM DARM DARM! Once again, I apologize for my tardiness—and this time, it was NOT my fault. xF My computer privileges got cut for two weeks because of my failing math grade…now that it's back up, I can return to go again! One again, thank you, my wonderful, wonderful reviewers, what would I do without you? I love your reviews, they put me in such a good mood. Thanks guys, I really appreciate the time you take out of your day to comment on my story. –huggles- I swear to god that my next update will be quicker. Haha, I couldn't help but leave this one as a cliffhanger…even though I felt like I was going to barf halfway through, I was so sick with myself for writing this. It was hard! –whimper-


	10. Bloody History

Disclaimer- I don't own Wolf's Rain. But if the producers would ever be so kind as to sell it to me…. 3

Dedication: This story is hereby dedicated to the wonderful Lonegrey. Here's to you, friend.

**Before the Flower's Call**

Lady Sheshkemana paced like a resltless tiger around the great hall, the only sound her harsh breathing behind the elaborate mask she woe to hide the hedious scar on her eye and the heavy clack clack of her heels on the sleek, hard marble floor. Absently, she tugged her dark, heavy gloves over her graceful hands as her ebony locks fell around her shoulders. He skirt flowed like water, long and smooth, but the side cuts to allow free movement raced almost all the way up to her ample hips. Her green eyes, difficult to see behind the jet mask seemed to glow from the dark depths, glinting in fury.

The body of her daughter, Ren, who had died to let the wolf pack out in the first place, was preserved here. She had refused to give her daughter up to the earth. She had been a pretty creature, with a coat of palest blonde and bright blue eyes that could no longer be seen, as they were closed in the sleep of death. Her graceful limbs were limp, her tail, once a golden flag of hope now lying listlessly on the floor, never to wag or bristle again.

The Noble woman kept shooting aggrieved glances to the body, gritting her so hard that it almost hurt. Damn her father! A wolf, like her, but he had been killed by the very pack that he had belonged to, once they found out who his mate was. Damn those wolves! They had corrupted her daughter into freeing them! And damn that little brown one straight to hell…he had slashed her eye out and had been hidden away by Ren for a night or so, right beneath Sheshkemana's unwary nose!

She stopped a heel suddenly, leaving a solid thud that echoed hollowly to be her only company in the shadowy room. Why the hell hadn't her buffoons caught them now? She should have killed them all when she had the chance, right here in this very Hall! She tightened her fist, jerking her head over her shoulder to scowl at the guards. She had needed those wolves to get to Paradise and revenge herself on all wolves…and now they were gone.

"YOU!" she screamed at the guards, pointing an accusatory finger at them, her voice bouncing off the walls, magnifying it to nine times or so its general volume. "GET OUT OF MY SIGHT UNTIL YOU HAVE SOMETHING TO REPORT ON THOSE WOLVES! Move it! Now! I don't want you back in here without results, _do you understand me? MOVE!_"

The guards in question nearly dropped their weapons and sprinted away, trying to get through the door first in case the Lady wanted to take her anger out on them, and she could run fast enough even in those ridiculous heels. Sheshkemana had been counting—they were gone in four seconds flat, completely out of sight. With a satisfied smirk, she stomped over to her throne and settled in, its cold, hard marble comforting to her almost bare back, her long hair a cushion for her crowned head.

She rolled past the wolves in her head—and there of them stuck out to her. Of course, there was that Toboe, or whatever the hell his name was. Oh, he would die slow, once she got her hands on him…and then the cream and gray wolf and that old buffer, Marel! Sheshkemana's eyes widened. Wait. Marel? Yes, that blind old fool. Marel, the seer wolf who had been caught and under torture for a long time before Getsuei and the wolf pack, Kiba and Hige had come to rescue Tsume and Toboe…Tsume would die watching Toboe die. That seemed appropriate, considering what she had heard from her guards.

But Marel! Memory rushed back to her, memories she had tried to banish from the realms of her mind. Marel…she had still been blind when she had first met her…Sheshkemana had remembered the joy the day she had been caught—because…

"Dammit!" she hissed to herself, gripping the arms of the chair voraciously. Yes, it had been Marel, Marel who had cursed Sheshkemana long, long ago.

It had been the day…that day when the resident pack infiltrated the Keep and killed her husband.

_She had sat in the throne room, stroking Caden's long silver fur at the foot of the mighty chair. It was a beautiful day outside, and the bright light from the sun filtered through the huge windows. The lamps were off, there was no need for them right now. Smooth marble floor was polished white, so smooth and beautiful Sheshkemana could see her reflection—in those days, she wore no mask, and her fine linen green dress was loose and comfortable. Ren, a tiny pup at the time slept peacefully in the folds of the smooth fabric, close to Caden's long, thoughtful muzzle, whose blue eyes matched the cerulean of her father's._

"_She looks a lot like you," Sheshkemana told Caden with a laugh in her voice. "Aside from the fur, of course." Caden's tail thumped the ground as his eyes shifted to meet those green ones of his mate. "She gets her good look from you, not me." As if to confirm this, the infant Ren turned her tiny face to her mother and whimpered, opening her tiny mouth and revealing perfect white milk teeth in a yawn. _

_Tickling the pup's ears, Sheshkemana leaned against the hard chair with a blissfull sigh, glancing out the window. She no longer needed to worry about her dreams; she was living them right now. Except—Caden had told her of Paradise…and he had said he was determined to find it, so they could live together there as a family, or at least look forward to going there when their string was played out. Music from the birds outside and the harp-players in the sunny courtyard slid into the hall, soothing the young Lady, barely twenty one, to sleep…_

_Suddenly, unfamiliar snarls cut through the tranquility, along with pained howls of men and the panicked screams of women, shrieking in unearthly tones through the air, jolting the little family. Ren flinched and dove for Caden, burying her head in his long fur as a panicked Sheshkemana scooped her up and held her close to her ample bosom, gathering her skirts in one hand so she wouldn't trip. "What's going on?" she shouted at the door, where her guards were stationed as her heart pounded. Caden had lunged to his feet, his eyes huge with anger, and fear, not for himself, but for his family, it was obvious by the way that he positioned himself in front of his mate and cub and glared at the door._

"_Damn them!" he snarled. "I was afraid it would come to this--! It's the pack!" Sheshkemana heard these words and felt her blood turn to ice. "No! Caden…!" she didn't know what to do! She knew about Caden's pack, and how his love for her was forbidden, but the wolf had risked his life to be with her from time to time anyway, saying that he wouldn't be able to live without her anyway. But Sheshkemana couldn't order her guards to kill them—Caden's own sister belonged to the pack! _

"_Barricade the door!" she yelled furiously from her position through the door. "Don't kill the wolves! The man who takes the life of a lupine will be killed without mercy!" she clutched Ren, careful to be gentle as Caden growled, his eyes bitter, "No, love! I need to speak with them, they'll kill the guards—" Ren was howling in fear, her shrill cries echoing as Sheshkemana tried to soothe her by petting her gently, but her hand was shaking._

_A panicked Sheshkemana could only scream in panic and anger as the doors were slammed forward, to reveal the bodies of the mangled guards who had fought bitterly to keep from killing the eight assailants and keep the doors shut at the same time. The wolves were big, their jaws dripping with human blood and their coats and muzzles streaked with gore, their yellow and green and blue eyes glittering with hurt and fury as they stared maliciously upon the family. _

_Numbly, the Lady thought, _How could they have gotten up here so quickly? _One of the wolves, a female with dark fur narrowed her eyes and strode forward. She looked remarkably like Caden, and through Sheshkemana's fear, she drew the conclusion that this was Caden's sister._

"_Caden you vile liar!" she howled, her ears pricked forward aggressively, her tail bushed out. "I speek as the advisor of the pack! You dog, you've risked the pack for your selfish love—and how the hell could you love a monster! She's a noble! Have you forgotten your pride as a wolf?"_

_Caden drew himself up furiously, glaring at his pack and sister. "Sister Marel, she is no monster! Don't you dare call her that! Lady Sheshkemana would never harm this pack, not while I'm here!"_

"_I see you've also gotten her pregnant! That's your cub, isn't it?" Spat another wolf, who was big and black, the way he carried himself making it plainly obvious he was the leader. "Have you no shame?" _

"_No!" Caden replied evenly, his eyes glinting. "Ren is—"_

"_A half-breed!" shrieked another wolf furiously, the others taking up a cry of "Traitor, traitor! Dog and traitor!" _

"_You dilute a wolf's pure blood!" Marel hurled the words at her brother, as Caden shouted back, "On my honor, we have done nothing wrong! Has anyone been killed or died at the hand of a human for the past year?"_

"_You don't have any honor!" his sister spat. "And you're going to pay for it with your life!" added the big black leader. "That Noble and your damn monster pup can live, tribute to your shame! Banishment is too good for a cur like you!"_

_Caden had no time to reply as he was buried under the weight and force of the angry pack as his defiant snarls turned into howling screams of pain and anguish and anger, to be heard above the voracious, furious snarling of the pack and then…_

_Hours later, there was blood everywhere. Blood, fur and the Lady Sheshkemana's tears as she held the broken, bleeding body of her mate close to her body, while Ren howled, a high, mournful cry._

A/N: Well, it looks like I can no longer help being slow at updating, guys. ;; Lately, computer time is even harder to come by for me, so, consequently, it's very difficult for me to get on. I'm so sorry. As for the reviews, thanks a ton, gang! I really love the feedback, it encourages me to write, even though my 'rents and all…-cough- So, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, history lesson. D


End file.
